Tender
by xcelestia
Summary: Elizabeth looks to the night sky for guidance and comfort when she's finding herself at a loss between war and love.


A quiet evening had fallen over the world. The last few pale rays of the sun were doused out like a small fire by the moon and stars. The stars shone brilliantly in the night sky, twinkling like dewdrops in the sun but far more...exquisite somehow.

A young girl was lost in her thoughts as she continued to admire the diamonds in the sky. From a branch of a beautiful, flowering plum tree, the young princess tries her hardest to ignore the events that conspired only hours before in this now quiet world. She finds herself at a loss, however. This land is no stranger to the war that had been at rampage. Only hours before, she was at battle against a bloodline of darkness and no heart in hopes of finding what she was longing for. The battle turned up empty-handed, however. And it had not gone well for either side.

While the rest of her allies had gone home, she chose to disappear and retreat to a quiet corner of the world in hopes to just forget. But it's never that easy, and she knows this by now but she _tries._

She brings her knees close to her chest and encircles her slender arms against her tiny frame, laying her head against her knees to admire the moon. The soft light from the moon as it graces the world always surprises her and she thinks this land is strange. The sun was so massive and blinding, an overwhelming presence. The moon was smaller, meeker, in comparison but its light still just as brilliant as its sun. Despite these contrasts, she enjoys both the light and dark sides of this world.

The tension she carries from earlier slowly begins to melt away as the moon's glow reaches her skin and she gives a long, quiet sigh in response. She is a healer among her kind, one of the best as she was taught by the finest masters in the art since she was young. She can heal many wounds of the flesh in seconds, it has become second nature to her by this point. But she has found that she cannot heal the emotional devastation being left in her heart by long, tireless battles, worry, and loss.

She feels her eyes become heavy the longer she stares at the iridescent moon and she leans her back against the bark of the tree. She's found a distraction from this harsh reality, and it works so well that sometimes she's afraid to continue in fear that it will eventually _stop_ working. But she needs this _tonight_ , she tells herself again. This has become a bad habit of hers, she sleepily thinks. Unconsciously, she closes her eyes and lets the promise of a sweet slumber overtake her anyway.

She wakes with a gasp escaping her lips as a loud _thump_ rooted her from her deep sleep. She gives her surroundings a quick glance to assess her situation. When her cerulean eyes land on a lone, dark figure seated across from her on _her_ branch, she can't help the huff of air that escapes her as she begins to pout.

"You look disappointed, goddess." The intruder speaks, his tone cold, smooth, and even. She narrows her eyes at his figure for a brief second and shifts her body so that she is turned away from this... _ruffian._

She ignores the interruption as best as she can by closing her eyes and snuggling back into the bark of the tree, her legs now hanging off the side of the branch. She tries to relax, tries to soothe her suddenly frayed nerves so that she can fall into another sweet spell of sleep.

"Talk to me," the words are whispered lowly, _deliciously_ in her ear and her eyes shoot open in surprise as she jumps, obviously frazzled. She whips her head around to face him, biting her lip in frustration just before she opens her mouth to give him an earful...but his face is _too_ close and she feels her neck warm when she sees a big smirk on his face.

She's startled, feeling embarrassed all of a sudden and tries to shift her body is _some_ way to just _get away from him_ but soon finds herself giving a tiny squeak just as she feels herself going down. She had _apparently_ forgotten how to really maneuver her body and she's slipped off the branch.

She was caught by a strong arm around her waist before she could even worry about any kind of collision and she's quickly pulled up. She's pulled against a toned chest, caught in the arms of the invader as he now leans against the bark of the tree she had so pleasantly laid against before. She feels flushed, her brows furrowed and her mouth turned down into a frown as she struggles to get out of his grip but she laments at the realization that she's not getting her way anytime soon. She gives up, crossing her arms across her chest and expresses her contempt with a scowl.

They sit in silence for a long while, the quiet night that she had found peaceful only some time ago now feeling overwhelming. She didn't dare to speak to him, despite every nerve in her body urging her to react to him. But she feels him run the tips of his fingers up and down her arm, his chin deciding to settle on her shoulder, and she feels her resolve beginning to crumble.

She can see the tips of blonde hair from the corner of her eye and now she's longing to peek at his face, but she's a proud woman and doesn't want to give in.. _yet._

So in hopes in trying to keep her resolve intact just a little bit longer, she casts her eyes down at her hands. She sees her hands laying on top of his at her waist and she doesn't remember when that happened or when her scowl slipped away from her lips, but she realizes now that she's long since lost this fight to him.

She feels the bridge of his nose slide against her cheek just before she feels him plant a feathery light kiss near her ear and she can't stop herself when her eyes flutter close at his soft pampering.

 _"Elizabeth,"_ he whispers and she curses her heart as it decides to finally give in to _him_ at the tender whisper of her name.

" _Meliodas—_ " she gasps out, turning her body a bit so that she can nuzzle her head into his neck and awkwardly wrap her arms around him. His hands sprawl along her back just before they tighten around her, returning her embrace. They stay in their embrace, quiet, and Elizabeth doesn't feel it to be overwhelming anymore.

"You finally talked to me," Meliodas says quietly, trying to gently start up a conversation. Elizabeth stays quiet for a moment before answering, not releasing her hold on him, "I haven't seen you."

"I know," is all he says as his reply. Elizabeth waits for more, though, hoping that her silence will prompt him to follow but Meliodas is _dense._ Annoyed, she pulls away from him to which he looks surprised at. She extends her grand, white wings and jumps off the branch landing on the soft ground with grace. Elizabeth begins walking and Meliodas is quick to follow her steps beside her, "Elizabeth—"

" _Begone, demon_." Elizabeth draws out as she tries to walk faster, her annoyance seeping in her tone. Meliodas grabs a hold of her wrist to swing her back to him and hold her in place, her eyes accidentally landing on his face to notice his sudden irritation.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" He asks curtly, a familiar scowl gracing his features. She notices the large, dark engravement of the demon clan on his forehead and his obsidian eyes glaring into her. She attempts to pull her wrist free, "Let go!"

"Tell me what's got you so moody, _goddess._ "She struggles in vain, the feeling of being unable to release herself causing a familiar feeling that begins to prick at her eyes. "Let me go!" She yells at him, her frustration suddenly causing her to activate her powers. Meliodas lets go at the expense of a burned hand and Elizabeth topples back at the sudden release.

She lands on the soft grass, the impact causing a few tears to fall from her eyes to which she begrudgingly tries to quickly wipe away without his notice. But Meliodas notices, he always does. He kneels down so that he's face-to-face with her and waits. The demon is dense and cunning all at the same time and Elizabeth feels it unfair and this only adds to her frustration with him but she digresses.

Meliodas stares down at her, his eyes narrowed. He's quiet and still as the night, waiting for her next move like she's prey being observed. She's always at a disadvantage with him and suddenly feels the urge to surprise him for once. She thinks of a few ways to catch him off guard as she glances around a few times to stare at anything but _him._ Her eyes land on the hand that was just on her a minute ago, though, and she feels a pang of regret when she notices it not healing as fast as he usually does. Once again, Elizabeth finds herself giving up another fight and she feels her expression soften.

She shifts her weight so that she rests on her knees and she nervously plays with her hair just before slipping a few strands behind her ear. He remains silent even when she takes his wounded and charred hand, eyeing her with dark eyes that never give away what he's thinking. She brings his hand up to her face and gently places her lips against the top of his hand. Within seconds, his hand is healed but the silence between them remains electrified.

Elizabeth now takes his hand and places it along her cheek. She looks at him in the eyes and notices his gaze softening as he begins to caress her cheek. "I'm sorry," she begins.

She scoots forward a few inches so that she's nearer to him before she continues, "I...I hadn't seen you. I haven't seen you in the battles recently... I was worried that something had happened to you, that maybe _someone_ found out. I was afraid." Elizabeth whispers honestly, and she feels the pressure that had been resting in her heart return in full force.

And she's crying _again_. "Meliodas," she says, tearfully, hanging her head low. "You've made such a mess of me. It's so unfair."

She feels her chin being lifted so that she can meet his eyes. She's left breathless as she's forced to take in the wonderful, beautiful color of his emerald eyes as he bores into her eyes lovingly. He holds her face in both his hands and he begins to softly stroke her cheeks and her plump lips with his thumb. He brings their faces closer, capturing her lips in such a tender way that it makes her toes curl and her eyelids flutter. She can't help but wrap her arms around him, drawing her fingers through his wild hair.

It was moments later when they finally released each other, absolutely breathless but never casting their gazes away from each other.

"Elizabeth," she hears him whisper while she looks at him in a daze and her heart beating wildly. His eyes reflect a need familiar to the two of them as he continues, "If anything, it's you who has made a mess of me." He leans back in to kiss her lips again, deeper than the last.

They sit back on the branch of the plum tree again, Elizabeth sitting comfortably between his legs as she rests her head against his chest. Elizabeth hums quietly as Meliodas twirled his fingers along the ends of her long, silky hair.

His other arm is snug around her waist as he lets his head lay on top of hers, both simply enjoying the other's presence. "You could have just asked me where I had been before getting moody with me, you know." Meliodas mumbles and Elizabeth finds a small smile tugging her lips.

"You should have just mentioned you were away on business." She tilts her head up so that she can give him a chaste kiss to his lips before speaking again, "Meliodas," her voice is silky and sweet like honey, "Call me moody once more and I will leave." Elizabeth gives him a final quick kiss and nestles back into his tightening embrace, a quiet chuckle is his only response.

They continue enjoying the rest of their night together catching up with loving whispers and sweet promises. The only witness to their love being hushed night graced by a moon and stars.


End file.
